A rotary tool for surface finishing has a disk whose outer peripheral portion is equipped with an array of radially projecting and angularly spaced machining teeth. Advantageously the disk is elastomeric, and the machining teeth project at a small acute angle to the radial direction. This means the machining teeth are generally positioned obliquely but can also run purely radially.
Such a rotary tool is described in DE 202 03 009. The heart of the matter here is an improved grinding disk for removing adhesives of stickers or dirty objects on an object to be ground. The grinding disk in question can be made of soft rubber and can for example be driven in a rotary manner by a hand tool. The grinding area can also be equipped with one face which at least forms a beveled outer edge.
A similar rotary tool with machining teeth that are not positioned obliquely is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 6,309,292. The rotary tool in question is also described as an eraser for removing residual adhesive and plastic foils from metal surfaces. To this end, the outer surface of the annular disk is pressed against the surface to be treated so that the residual adhesive and foils such as for example glued-on trim and advertising of plastic foil are softened and detached. This is performed successfully without damaging the metal surfaces concerned and more preferably painted surfaces as are customary for example with cars.
In addition to this, a rotary abrasion tool is known through U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,879 whose finishing elements are embodied as tufts of flexibly stiff plastic with abrasive embedded in the plastic. Surface machining free of damage can hardly be accomplished by means of this.
The known rotary tools for surface machining have proven themselves in principle but have reached limits where not only careful machining is required but such is to be done quickly and effectively at the same time. This is where the invention comes in.